Arrangement for closing the upper end of a cigarette hopper



June 27, 17967 o. N|EPMANN 3,327,877

ARRANGEMENT FOR CLOSING THE UPPER END OF A CIGARETTE HOPPER y Filed Jure 21, 1965 INVENTOR.

United States Patent C) 3,327,877 ARRANGEMENT FOR CLOSING THE UPPER END OF A CIGARETTE HOPPER Otto Niepmann, Gevelsberg, Westphalia, Germany, as-

signor to Fr. Niepmann & Co., Gevelsberg, Westphalia, Germany Filed .lune 21, 1965, Ser. No. 465,676 Claims priority, application Germany, July 7, 1964, N 2 16 3 Claims. (Cl. 214-307) The present invention concerns a device for closing the upper end of a hopper used in connection with cigarette packing machine when a cigarette lled container which is open at the bottom is moved over said hopper. In connection with devices of this type it is desirable that the hopper is opened as quickly as possible so as to assure a uniform drop of the cigarettes from the container into the hopper.

In connection with containers of the above-mentioned type in cigarette packing machines, it is known prior to tilt said container onto a funnel, to close said container by means of a steel band and, following the tilting movement of said container, to wind up the steel band so as to form a roll. This steel band which is provided on the tilting device is, prior to the tilting operation, manually pulled over the opening of said container and is locked on that side which is opposite said roll. For opening purposes, the locking device is unlocked and the steel band is wound up by means of a spring. This heretofore known device is intended to keep the open side of the container closed during the tilting operation in order to prevent cigarettes from dropping out yof said container prematurely. When employing a fully automatic container changing device, the just described manually operable arrangement is unsuitable or at least highly impractical.

It is also known to close a cigarette hopper by means of a pivotable closure plate prior to the placing of the cigarette filled container onto the hopper. Such a plate has the drawback that it has to be tilted downwardly at an extremely high speed, i.e., instantaneously inasmuch as otherwise damage to the cigarettes is unavoidable and it is impossible for the cigarettes to drop in a straight position into the hopper. If the drop height is relatively great, the newly fed cigarettes spring back upwardly and thereby disturb the upper layer of the pile of dropping cigarettes.

It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide an arrangement for closing the upper end of a cigarette hopper used in connection with cigarette packing machines, which will overcome the above mentioned drawbacks.

It is another object of this invention to provide a-clos ing arrangement for cigarette hoppers which will assure a proper transfer of the cigarettes from the cigarette loaded container into the hopper.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly from the following specication in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 diagrammatically illustrates a front view of a device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a section taken along the line II-II of FIG. 1 through a steel band winding drum according to the invention.

FIG. 3 is a section taken along the line III-III of FIG.. 1.

In order to permit an automatic opening and closing of a cigarette hopper, which automatic opening and closing may be controlled for instance by photoelectric cells, the present invention suggests the provision of a drum arranged adjacent said cigarette hopper and located in a housing. Connected to said drum and adapted to be 3,327,877 Patented June 27, 1967 wound Ionto and off said drum is a steel band which is adapted to open the inlet opening of said hopper while being guided by guiding rails or the like. The reciprocatory movement of said steel band over and away from the inlet opening of said hopper is effected according to the specic embodiment shown in the drawing by rack and pinion means operatively connected to said drum. The drum may be rotated at a certain speed which is most favorable for the emptying of the cigarette filled container into said hopper. In order to prevent said steel band during its movement from deviating from its path, a slight play only is provided between the housing and the drum. In view of the uniformly controlled displacement of the steel band for freeing the funnel opening, a spring-back of the dropping cigarettes will be avoided.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, the arrangement illustrated therein comprises two guiding means 1 and 2 into which the container is to be inserted which contains the cigarettes to be packed and discharged from said container. The arrangement shown in FIG. 1 also comprises a closing wall 3. Arranged below said guiding means, there is provided a steel band 4 which also forms a closing Wall and which is guided between guiding means 5 and 6 at both longitudinal sides of a hopper used in connection with cigarette packing machines. Steel band 4 is wound onto a drum 7 which is arranged adjacent the entrance to the hopper and is flexible and thrust sustaining, so that its free end portion may be projected from the housing over the entrance to the hopper. Drum 7 is surrounded by a housing S so that when the steel band 4 is wound onto said drum, it will be in the space between drum 7 and housing 8, Keyed to shaft 9 of drum 7 is a pinion 1t) which meshes with a rack 11 adapted to be moved upwardly and downwardly. By displacing rack 11, pinion 10 will turn at high speed so that also drum 7 rotates at high speed and steel band 4 can be quickly moved back and forth in order to close said hopper or to free the entrance to said hopper. Housing 8 surrounding drum 7 makes it possible by means of drive 10, 11 to move steel band 4 outwardly inasmuch as said steel band is able to support itself `on the outer drum formed by housing 8. Therefore, it is not necessary manually to pull steel band 4 outwardly and to provide special ratchet or locking means for the tensioned position of the steel band.

The container which receives the cigarettes in parallel relation is tilted upwardly into the position shown in FIG. 3 and this tilting is done so quickly the cigarettes have no opportunity to become deranged or to drop from the container. The cigarettes abut endwise against Wall 3 and drop to band 4 which engages the lateral sides of the cigarettes. Band 4, which is carried by the hopper in the guide rails 5 and 6 at the top -of the hopper can be Withdrawn to drop the cigarettes, again with no derangement, into the hopper. A particular benefit of the present invention is that the band can quickly be thrust back into hopper closing position by rotation of drum 7 without the band buckling or bending.

It is, of course, to be understood that the present invention is, by no means, limited to the particular arrangement shown in the drawing but also comprises any moditications within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a cigarette packing machine; a hopper having a top receiving opening for receiving cigarettes from a container, a thrust sustaining, flexible band arranged adjacent said hopper opening having a free end portion movable across said opening to close and open the same, a drum at one side of the hopper to which one end of the band is connected so rotation of the drum will draw the band olf the opening or feed its free end portion from the drum across the opening, and a housing surrounding ly larger in diameter than the diameter of said drum with the band wound thereon and confining the band thereto relatively closely in the radial direction to prevent buckling of the band when it is fed from the drum to close said opening and drive means connected to said drum to rotate said drum in either direction to move thefree end portion of said band in either direction across said opening.

2. A machine as claimed in claim 1, in which said ma-v chine includes guide means to'conne said free end portion of said band to a path across said opening.

3. A machine as claimed in claim 2, in which said guide means comprises guide rails extending parallel to the direction of movement of said band and disposed on opposite sides of saidopening 4outside of said housing and engaging the top and bottom surfaces of saidband to guide said band in its path across said opening.

References Cited 'UNITED STATES PATENTS FOREIGN PATENTS 877,215 9/1961 Great Britain. 182,441 1/1963 Sweden.

HUGO o. SCHULZ, Primm-y Examiner.

2/1954 Sinks 214--307 

1. IN A CIGARETTE PACKING MACHINE; A HOPPER HAVING A TOP RECEIVING OPENING FOR RECEIVING CIGARETTES FROM A CONTAINER, A THRUST SUSTAINING, FLEXIBLE BAND ARRANGED ADJACENT SAID HOPPER OPENING HAVING A FREE END PORTION MOVABLE ACROSS SAID OPENING TO CLOSE AND OPEN THE SAME, A DRUM AT ONE SIDE OF THE HOPPER TO WHICH ONE END OF THE BAND IS CONNECTED SO ROTATION OF THE DRUM WILL DRAW THE BAND OFF THE OPENING OR FEED ITS FREE END PORTION FROM THE DRUM ACROSS THE OPENING, AND A HOUSING SURROUNDING SAID DRUM AND HAVING AN INTERNAL PERIPHERAL PORTION SLIGHTLY LARGER IN DIAMETER THAN THE DIAMETER OF SAID DRUM WITH THE BAND WOUND THEREON AND CONFINING THE BAND THERETO RELATIVELY CLOSELY IN THE RADIAL DIRECTION TO PREVENT BUCKLING OF THE BAND WHEN IT IS FED FROM THE DRUM TO CLOSE SAID OPENING AND DRIVE MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID DRUM TO ROTATE SAID DRUM IN EITHER DIRECTION TO MOVE THE FREE END PORTION OF SAID BAND IN EITHER DIRECTION ACROSS SAID OPENING. 